O Christmas tree! Storm topples Tennessee’s holiday spruce

December 23, 2017

The Christmas tree in Nashville, Tenn.'s Public Square Park lies on its side on Saturday, Dec. 23, 2017. City officials say the culprit was a combination of wind, rain and possibly a defective anchor. A 35-foot tall Christmas tree still stands outside the state Capitol, which is not far from where this tree fell. (Kyle Cooke, Danielle Allen/WSMV via AP)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — O Christmas Tree! A Grinch of a storm has toppled the official holiday spruce in Tennessee’s capital city.

Area media outlets report that Nashville’s 40-foot (12-meter) Norway spruce was toppled overnight, with officials blaming a combination of wind, rain and possibly a defective anchor.

More than 2,000 people had turned out Dec. 1 for the tree’s lighting ceremony with Nashville Mayor Megan Barry, including a performance by the husband-and-wife duo of Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires.

The Tennessean reports city officials won’t right the tree. They plan to haul it from Nashville’s Public Square Park because they don’t have the time or manpower to stand it up again and redecorate it.

But not all is ‘bah humbug’: A twinkling 35-foot (10-meter) tree still stands outside the state Capitol nearby.